Automatic Duck, the creators of Timeline Integration Engine software for digital media artists, today announced the immediate availability of Pro Import AE 4.0. A major upgrade to Automatic Duck's signature timeline translation tool for Adobe After Effects artists, Pro Import AE 4.0 was developed with significant input and feedback from the Company's extensive user base.

Pro Import AE 4.0 addresses a number of new developments impacting users, including the recent launch of Adobe Creative Suite 3, the industry shift to Intel-based Mac systems and the need for improved support for HDV, DVCProHD and XDCAM formats for Final Cut Pro users. Automatic Duck has also added a number of key improvements, including:

Support for Multiclips from Final Cut Pro;

Motion project import, with Particle and Replicator layers now coming in to After Effects;

Additionally, Pro Import AE 4.0 introduces an advanced new user interface that offers users a number of powerful, streamlining capabilities including the option for layers to 'step up' or 'step down' in the After Effects timeline, an option to use Avid rendered media in After Effects and an option to pre-comp layers based on the tracks from the NLE.

Jimmy Dodson of 20th Century Fox, and a producer/director of the Hollywood blockbuster Behind Enemy Lines II has worked extensively with Pro Import AE 4.0 as part of the Company's beta testing program and had this to say about the new developments from Automatic Duck: "Facing a tight delivery deadline on Behind Enemy Lines II, Automatic Duck saved our butts! We built our Hi Def sequence in Final Cut Pro--exported to After Effects and, voila, a fully built After Effects project ready for tweaking appeared like magic!"

Dodson continued, "The new release [of Pro Import AE 4.0] makes things even more dreamy by allowing me to keep vertically adjacent layers together and stack down or up. Automatic Duck has made an invaluable tool even better!"

Also new with the release of Pro Import AE 4.0, Final Cut Pro users now have the option to use Automatic Duck's timeline translation tools to export all color correction work completed with Red Giant Software Magic Bullet Colorista directly to After Effects with all settings intact.

Sean Safreed, co-founder of Red Giant Software commented on the technology collaboration with Automatic Duck, "Some of the most creative minds rely on Magic Bullet Colorista to add their signature look and feel to their work. Our friends at Automatic Duck have helped to create a more fluid workflow for color correction between Final Cut Pro and After Effects. The new developments in Pro Import AE 4.0 represent a big win for customers."

New and Improved in Pro Import AE 4.0 Pro Import AE 4.0 touts several new enhancements including the following:

Support for displaying Motion particles and replicators in After Effects;

Translation of Red Giant Software's Magic Bullet Colorista plug-in from Final Cut Pro to After Effects

Support for Avid Advanced Keyframes in picture-in-picture and 3D Warp;

Support for Avid Timewarps;

Support for Dip-to-Color transitions;

Support for Final Cut Pro Basic 3D effect;

Support for Video Strobe effects;

Support for clip and track enabled states from Final Cut Pro;

Improved support for HDV, DVCProHD and XDCAM for Final Cut Pro users;

Support for text from FCP subtitling plug-ins like SubBits and DH_Subtitle;

New HTML exception log

Pro Import AE 4.0 is available immediately and is priced at $495. Users who purchased new licenses or upgrades to Pro Import AE 3.0 on or after March 8, 2007 will be offered upgrades to version 4.0 at no charge until December 8, 2007. Users of Pro Import AE 3.0 who purchased before March 8, 2007, as well as users of older After Effects import plug-ins, will be able to upgrade for $195 per license.